It is generally known to wrap bales of compressible material with wire to keep the bales in a compressed form, such as for shipping and storage. One notable method for tying a bale is referred to as the automatic tie method or auto-tie method in which a bundle of loose, compressible material is pressed into a bale by a ram and moved by the ram through the baler. A plurality of continuous wire strands extend across the bale path at different heights on the bale and are fed by supply rollers positioned on either side of the bale path. As the bale moves through the baler, the wires are wrapped around the front end and sides of the bale, and the wraps extend toward the rear of the bale on both sides of the bale. At a predetermined position along the bale path, reciprocating plungers or needles engage the continuous wire strands and pull or push the strands across the back end of the bale. In doing so, the plungers create loops proximate the back end of the bale. A twisting mechanism then engages sections of wire from the loops and sections of wire from the supply rolls and twists the respective sections together. One side of the twist forms a completed tie or wrap around the bale, while the other side of the twist again reforms a continuous strand of baling wire between the supply rolls. The twist is then cut proximate its center such that the tied bale continues through the baler and the continuous strands engage the next successive bale for further wrapping or tying. Examples of various auto-tie methods are illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,120,238; 4,155,296; 4,167,902 and 4,459,904.
While such methods have proven somewhat suitable for baling and tying compressed bales, currently available methods have several drawbacks which reduce the efficiency of the baling process and further reduce the strength of the wire ties or wraps. Furthermore, the location of the wire twist structures on the bale and their shape and formation present difficulties both during tying and after the bales have been tied.
For example, existing methods and apparatuses create twists which are cut in the middle wherein one side of each twist stays attached with the bale, while the other side of each twist connects the wires from the supply rolls together to form a continuous wire strand. The cuts yield two pigtail structures for each tying wire, one on the bale and one on the continuous strand. The pigtails on the continuous wire strands are then located on the next successive bale that is wrapped and tied. Therefore, each bale has generally two pigtails per wrap. Each pigtail structure is twisted with either a right-hand or left-hand twist and extends generally transverse to the wire strands. The pigtail twists stick out from the bale such that they may be caught in the tying mechanism as the bale progresses therethrough, particularly if the bale is a short bale. The pigtails also have a tendency to catch on other structures, such as other bales, when the bales are stacked on top of each other, and thereby provide resistance to separation when the bales are to be used. Still further, the twists are made when the bale is tightly wrapped causing an unequal twisting tension wherein the pigtails on the bale are weakened, making them subject to breakage when the bale is handled. Furthermore, since the twists have a single twist orientation (i.e., left hand or right hand), they are subject to unravelling. Bending the pigtails downwardly parallel with the baling wire to prevent some of the above-discussed drawbacks also weakens the pigtail and the wire wrap and promotes unravelling.
Therefore, it is an objective of the present invention to bind and tie a bale of compressible material quickly and efficiently with continuous strands of baling wire positioned for automatically wrapping and tying successive bales.
It is a further objective of the present invention to wrap and tie bales with a strong durable twist which has sufficient strength to hold the bales together even during handling.
It is another objective of the present invention to eliminate pigtail twists and the drawbacks associated with such pigtail twists during the wrapping and tying of a bale.
Still further, it is an objective of the invention to produce a bale which may be handled and stacked without breaking the wire ties or jeopardizing the integrity of the wire ties.
It is a further objective to tie a bale with twists that are not subject to being easily unravelled when the bale is handled.